Mail & Guardian
Mail & Guardian

Light Pollution

latest news & developments
Artificial: A satellite image of Africa and part of Europe at night. Light pollution is not yet a major problem in most of Africa but development will change this. (Planet Observer/Universal Images Group/Getty Images)
ARTIFICIAL LIGHT AT NIGHT

Blinding wildlife: The dark side of artificial light at night

A new guide says cities should power down to reduce the harmful effects of light pollution on all life from insects and bats to birds and turtles

  • Sheree Bega
7 min read
Wrapped in a mosquito net to protect from malaria, a trader sleeps next to items. (Photo by Badru Katumba/AFP)
ARTIFICIAL LIGHT

Artificial lights across Africa may alter the biting behaviours of mosquitoes

‘Artificial light is doing things to the environment that we don’t even think about’

  • Sheree Bega
5 min read
Dung beetles rely on the Milky Way for direction at night, but new research shows how light pollution is causing them to lose their bearings. (Photo by Taylor Weidman/LightRocket via Getty Images)
ARTIFICIAL SKYLIGHT

Rolling blind: What happens when dung beetles get lost?

Dung beetles rely on the Milky Way for direction at night, but new research shows how light pollution is causing them to lose their bearings. This could spell danger for other…

  • Sarah Evans
4 min read
Dim it: Most people around the world live under light-polluted night skies in urban areas. But rural areas are being affected too, such as gas and oil producing areas in the United States. (Bettymaya Foott)
ARUP

Cities need to embrace dark night skies

Brightness harms people’s and other creatures’ health, disrupts ecosystems and changes climate

  • Nick Dunn
5 min read